Shielding Sam
by wibblywobblywesteros
Summary: Tony doesn't know he has a daughter but he does know he has a stalker. One shot. Fluffy and a little cliche.
1. Chapter 1

She had been following Tony around for more than a month. Ordinarily if someone were following him, he'd just send security to get rid of them. It was that easy. But this particular follower was just a kid. Just a teenage girl and he couldn't see the point in frightening her by sending men in suits with guns. She was probably just a fan anyway. Most of his fans were older usually, but the world was a weird place so as long as the teenage girl kept her distance and didn't pose a threat, he'd just let her be.

Tony saw the kid multiple places every day. Sometimes outside of Stark Tower, sometimes at his favorite coffee shop, some evenings she was outside one of the upscale bars he liked to visit. She never approached him or tried to talk to him, she just watched. Most times she was dressed rather raggedly in tattered jeans, faded sweat shirt, and worn out sneakers. Her dark hair was generally pulled into a braid and more than half the time her brown eyes were covered with large rimmed sunglasses.

Then late one afternoon Tony was leaving the coffee shop and caught sight of the kid some ten feet down the sidewalk. She wasn't wearing her sunglasses and for the first time it was clear why she wore them most of the time. It was to hide the bruises on her face. She wore a t-shirt this day instead of the sweatshirt she always wore even in hot weather. With her arms exposed he could see that she had multiple scars on her skin.

"Okay kid, what's the deal?" He said to her. She was close enough to hear him. She looked a little frightened that he had actually spoken to her. "You've been following me for five weeks now. I see you every day. Are you looking for money or for help with whoever gave you that bruise or what?"

"N-neither one. I just want help with this." The girl held out an object in her hand the size of a baseball. She pushed a button in the center and a transparent shield generated out of the object and around her body.

Tony took a couple steps closer and touched it, finding that it held solid. "Looks fine to me," But as he said it the shield fluctuated and flickered out.

"It doesn't have a stable power source," The kid said. "There's something wrong with my calculations."

"Let me see that?" Tony said. This wasn't just some ordinary science fair project. This was technology that was beyond most ordinary scientists. If this girl really had made this, she was at level of intelligence that few people in the world would ever reach. Tony looked over the device and found that it did indeed have evidence of being home made with ordinary materials a person could get at a hardware store but even so, it was extremely well done. "Do you have your calculations written down somewhere?"

The girl took a paper from the back pocket of her jeans. Tony unfolded it and found an equation for balancing the power fluctuations. Again, not something an ordinary teenager should have any clue about. Maybe she didn't though. Maybe a competitor had sent her.

"I think you should adjust this by 32 degrees," Tony said, just to see if she actually knew what she was talking about.

The girl stared at him as if he were nuts. "I'd probably catch on fire if I did that. It can't change by more than ten degrees or the field is unstable."

"Good. So you actually do know this stuff. What's your name kid?"

"Sam. Samantha Denver." She said.

"Well Sam, I have an appointment right now but if you come by Stark tower in two hours, security will let you in and we'll fix that power source, okay?" Tony offered. It wasn't really that he cared to help this kid. He wasn't so heartless that he didn't care either. It was simply that a girl that smart was going to become his competition someday. He couldn't afford to have her grow up hating him. She needed that shield to protect her from whoever was giving her scars and bruises. He had to help or it would come back as bad karma later.

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Two hours later Sam was on her way up the elevator to see Tony Stark. He was gonna figure out pretty quickly she had something to hide. That's why she had taken all these weeks and still been too shy to approach him. How can anyone just walk up to a celebrity and say, "hey you're my father."? Sam had found out three months earlier who her biological father was. She'd been in the attic at her stepdad's house looking for her birth certificate so she could take driver's ed when she'd found some letters written by Aunt Christy to her mom. Most of them were all about Aunt Christy's trip to Italy and then one had just five sentences that told her for the first time the name of her biological father.

"...I can't believe you're pregnant Gina. It was only one night with Tony Stark. Are you going to tell him the baby is his? You should, your baby would well taken care of with all that wealth but I guess then Dan would have to know and he'd probably never forgive you."

That was it. The only clue she'd ever had. Her mom had died just a few months after that letter had been written, just days after she'd been born. Dan had raised Sam and had done so resentfully because he couldn't have children of his own and had known all along that Sam was not his. He was reminded continuously of who she was by her brown eyes and dark hair which were nothing like his blue eyes and blond hair or her mother's red hair and green eyes and he wouldn't let her forget it either. He had hated Sam and had somehow blamed her for her mother's death. If Dan had known her father's name, he'd never told her. Once Sam knew the truth, she couldn't get it out of her mind. She had been going crazy with wanting to meet this man who was her father. She wanted to know if maybe he would accept her when no one else would.

The shield was a genuine project of hers. She had been working on it for over a year as a way to try to defend herself from Dan and his rages but she honestly didn't care if Tony could help her with it or not. She only wanted to meet him. Now that the moment to actually spend time with him had come she found that she was reeling with anxiety.

The elevator doors opened. Sam stepped out and promptly puked all over the floor in front of her.

"Oh shit," Tony mumbled from somewhere across the room. He came to her with a paper bag as she struggled to stand upright and wiped her mouth with the inside of the collar of her shirt.

"I'm sorry...I'm sorry Mr Stark…" Sam said, making every effort not to burst into tears.

"If elevators make you sick, maybe you should take the stairs next time. Anyway, I'll get my bots to clean it up." He said.

"Thanks," She mumbled.

"So you brought it?" He asked.

Sam took out the force field generator and passed it to him.

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Sam Denver never stopped being nervous the entire time she was in his lab. Tony figured it probably had something to do with her scars and bruises. She probably didn't trust people in general. He could understand that. It was a little frustrating though because her state of anxiety was keeping her from truly focusing on the project at hand. Sam was exceptionally bright. Her project was well beyond her years and she couldn't seem to think clearly enough to explain how she had made it. She did have the answers, he just had to draw each one out of her like pulling splinters.

At one point Tony reached for a tool at the same moment as Sam reached for a tool. His hand touched hers and she flinched as though she had been bitten.

"Look, Sam, I don't know who gave you the bruises or the scars but I'm not like that. I'm not gonna hurt you." He told her gently.

Sam's eyes met his for a moment and then she just burst into tears. She was crying so hard that she sank down to the floor and hugged her knees in an attempt to hide her face. Crying women and children were not Tony's strong suit and for a moment he was completely at a loss on what to do.

"Okay…" He said with a sigh. "Clearly we're not gonna get anywhere on this shield unless you deal with whatever it is that has you too terrified to focus. So tell me, who gave you the bruise?"

"My stepfather, Dan…" Sam said, struggling to get a hold of herself and get to her feet. "I'm sorry...I'm sorry I bothered you Mr Stark. Maybe I'll be able to figure out the shield for myself eventually." Sam's face was red with shame as she fled the room for the elevator.

As the elevator doors closed Tony looked down and saw an envelope on the floor that had fallen from the back pocket of her jeans. It was addressed to a Gina Denver and postmarked for a date fifteen years earlier. The name on the envelope was familiar but he couldn't quite place it. Then, in spite of it being none of his business, Tony opened the letter. At first it was just drivel about a trip to Italy. Then there were a few lines that actually explained everything that had just happened.

"...I can't believe you're pregnant Gina. It was only one night with Tony Stark. Are you going to tell him the baby is his? You should, your baby would well taken care of with all that wealth but I guess then Dan would have to know and he'd probably never forgive you."

Whether it was true or not, Sam believed he was her father. That's why she had sought him out. That's why she had been so afraid to talk to him for weeks. That's why she had puked all over his carpet. She was worried he wouldn't want her.

"Jarvis," Tony spoke up. "Which one of my bots cleaned up the vomit? I want the residue tested for genetic material."

"Of course Mr Stark," Jarvis replied.

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Sam got sick again on the walk home, all over the sidewalk. She had always been one to puke when she got upset. Dan had always made it worse too. He was waiting for her on the porch when she got home.

"You're late," He said, looking angry.

"Sorry, I got sick…" She said. It was only partially the truth but she hoped it would be enough.

"You're disgusting. Go clean yourself up and get started on dinner. I'm not gonna wait all night."

Sam did as she was told, changing her shirt as quickly as possible, cleaning up, and starting on cooking cheeseburgers.

"Hey brat! Bring me a beer!" Dan called from the living room. Great. He was planning on drinking tonight and he was already in a bad mood. That was never a good sign.

Sam brought him the beer and went back to the burgers.

"Hey brat!" Dan called out a second time. "Get me my slippers!"

Sam went and got him his slippers without a word. She knew by now it was always best to just do what he asked no matter how unreasonable it might happen to be. The rest of the evening was rather uneventful. Sam made the burgers. Served the food. Cleaned up the supper. Brought Dan various items that he demanded of her. Then she locked herself in her room to continue work on her project. She heard Dan start throwing things around the living room an hour later. That was always a bad sign. Any moment now and he would come breaking down her door and attempting to beat the shit out of her for daring to exist. She could turn on the shield but it would only last a few minutes and then he would break through and be more furious than before. She could crawl out a window and try to hide from him but she had no real place to go. She would have to come back eventually. Might as well stay and get it over with.

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"Mr Stark, the test you requested is complete," Jarvis broke Tony from his thoughts some hours later.

"And what was the result?" Tony asked, suddenly alert.

"Samantha Denver is your biological daughter." Jarvis stated.

Tony let out a breath. "I see. Well what can you tell me about her? Does she have social media? A police record? Anything?"

"She has several social media accounts which are used very infrequently. There are a total of forty two friends between them all. As for police records, it seems that Sam made several calls to 911 over the past few years but a police officer was never sent to the scene. Apparently her stepfather Daniel Landon is a police officer himself and each time she made a call, he radioed his fellow officers and told them everything was clear. She has several hospital records with various traumatic injuries not limited to broken bones, burns, and stab wounds. Her mother died a few days after her birth and she has an Aunt living abroad. As for good news, Samantha did win several science awards in her school and already has a university scholarship." Jarvis told him.

"So she doesn't have many friends, she's living in an abusive situation and can't get out, but she won science awards so life is great," Tony said sarcastically. He sighed and got to his feet. "Have my car ready Jarvis. I'm gonna go get her."

He couldn't leave her where she was. The bruise had been disturbing enough when she was just some stranger off the streets but now that she was his daughter there was no way in hell he could leave her to face more of that. He couldn't get out of his mind the way she had flinched and then collapsed into a puddle of tears when he'd touched her hand. No one deserved to be that scared. He was going to end all that. He was going to end it and make her safe.

Tony's driver brought him to the address Jarvis had given them and he got out and went to the front door. The house was a smaller townhouse in a more run down part of the city. So clearly Sam had never known wealth. Tony knocked on the door. A blond man wrenched the door open.

"What do you want?" Dan slurred. Tony couldn't help but notice the blood on his knuckles.

"Where's Sam?" Tony asked, getting straight to the point.

"Why? What do you want with her?" Dan said almost coherently.

Sam appeared in the doorway of a nearby room. There was blood on her lip, tears on her face, vomit on the floor. She was clearly confused as to why Tony was even there.

"What do I want with her? Well, since she's my daughter I want to take her home where she belongs," He said plainly.

Sam gasped and Dan stumbled back a step. Tony expected the man was going to get angry any moment but he only looked confused. "Good…" Dan slurred. "You do that. Good riddance." Dan turned and went to his bedroom, slamming the door shut behind him.

Sam seemed glued to the spot where she stood. "How did you know?"

"You dropped this," Tony held up the letter. "And I had my bots test your puke for DNA...so are you coming or not?"

"You really mean it?" She asked, not quite believing him.

"Yeah. You're not staying here. And if Dan here changes his mind once he's sober I will fight him in court. So grab anything that's important to you and the rest we can buy new." Tony told her.

Sam went into her room and filled a pillowcase with stuff. Then she came back out, crossed the room, and hugged him. "Thank you," She breathed as his arms came around her. He hugged her briefly and then he led her out to the limo.

Sam felt as if she were in a dream. She had never been in a limo before. She had certainly never expected her father would come to her house and take her away. It just wasn't even believable. Dan wasn't going to be able to hurt her again. She must have looked as overwhelmed as she felt because Tony spoke up as the pulled out of the driveway.

"Hey, it's gonna be okay. I know it's a big change, but it's gonna be okay." He said.

"It's a big change for you too," Sam pointed out, wondering how he had decided so quickly to come for her.

"I suppose some things will be different," Tony admitted. "I'll actually be able to talk to someone about my projects without having to break things down into easier terms that they can comprehend. I'll have someone to bring to business dinners and not have to explain why Pepper isn't there. Also, my house will be a lot less lonely. So...I'm not really seeing any downsides here."

Sam was more than a little surprised by his words. He wasn't just talking about giving her a bedroom in his house but about actually spending time with her like she mattered. "I'm gonna cost money," She decided to mention.

"Do you have any idea how much money I have?" Tony asked her. "Believe me, I can buy anything you'd ever need or want and however much it costs, you're worth it."

Sam found herself starting to cry again. "I can't believe this is real." She muttered.

Tony smiled a little at that and put his sunglasses back on. "It's real kid...it's real."

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Tony found he was somewhat amused by Sam's huge eyes as he showed her around his house. She had been raised in one of the poorest parts of the city. His home was probably well beyond what she'd ever dreamed of having. The kid was impressed and overwhelmed and excited all at once.

"This is your room," Tony showed her last of all. It was a good room with a king sized bed, attached bath, and walk in closet. The room was probably larger than the entire downstairs of the house she had grown up in.

Sam turned to him with shock on her face. "Are you serious?"

"Perfectly serious," He said, still amused by her reaction.

She entered the room and looked around at things timidly as if she were afraid to touch anything.

"Don't worry about breaking stuff. Everything in here can be replaced." He told her.

Sam stopped in front of a mirror and wiped the blood off of her swollen lip.

"Let me get you some ice for that?" Tony said and he wandered back to the kitchen and filled a ziplock bag with ice.

By the time he returned to Sam she was struggling unwrap an ace bandage underneath her shirt. There was fresh blood all over the bandage.

"What the hell happened here?" He asked, passing her the ice.

"He um...Dan, he whipped me with a belt a couple of days ago." Sam explained. "I just need to get off the bandage...I think some of the cuts are infected." She pulled at the bandage and it stuck to the skin above her hip.

"Shit," Tony said. "Will you let me help you with that or do you intend to tear off all your skin?"

"Not ALL my skin," She replied, "Just the skin in the middle." She tore gently at the fabric and flinched as inch tore free and revealed a wound that was indeed infected.

"We should go to a hospital and get this looked at," Tony said.

"I don't need a hospital. I've done this lots of times," Sam said, tugging at the fabric again.

"Nope. Just nope," Tony crossed the room and grabbed her hand. "Stop doing that. If you're gonna do this yourself you at least need to get the bandage wet so it will pull free easier."

"I know that but I don't have three hands," Sam argued.

"Why would you need three hands?" Tony was growing frustrated with her willingness to hurt herself or at least not care about proper treatment.

"One to hold the bandage, one to hold the water, and one to keep my shirt out of the way." Sam said.

"Then take the fucking shirt off. I'll leave so you can do that. Just don't...don't tear your skin like that. It's not healthy," He told her, worried. He took a step back to leave her to and realized that if it was stuck this badly, she hadn't changed the bandage at her old home either.

"What?" Sam asked him, seeing that he hadn't left yet.

"You were afraid to change your clothes with Dan in the house," Tony said, with realization.

Sam looked down at her feet, jaw trembling as she did so.

"What did he do to you?" Tony asked, dreading to know the answer.

"He said...he said that since I wasn't his real daughter, he could do anything he wanted with me," She said, still shaking. "And only when he was drunk…"

"He was drunk tonight. Did he…?" he had to know.

Sam nodded, her tears falling to the floor.

Tony punched the wall. He couldn't remember feeling so enraged in all his life. He took a deep shuddering breath and turned to Sam. "We need to get you to a hospital."

"I don't want to go to a hospital," Sam whispered.

"I know, but it's for your own good." Tony said.

Three hours later Tony was driving Sam home from the hospital himself. He hadn't bothered with a driver so late at night. Sam was sullenly staring out the window. She hadn't wanted to be at the hospital at all. She hadn't wanted any help with cleaning up her cuts. She hadn't wanted the invasion of a rape hit. He was pretty sure she was angry with him for making her do it. He parked his car and followed her into the house and back to her room.

"Are you gonna ever forgive me for taking you there just now?" Tony asked her from her doorway.

She nodded but didn't say a word to him.

"Goodnight Sam." Tony said, moving away. He'd only gotten a few steps down the hall when she called after him.

"Wait?" Sam sobbed out the word, her voice breaking.

Tony went back and Sam met him in the doorway, throwing her arms around him, she just clung to him sobbing. Tony hugged her gently, knowing that she was probably in pain from all those cuts. The pain didn't seem to bother her. She was clinging to him as tightly as she could and had no intention of letting go anytime soon. So Tony held her for as long as she needed him. It was probably twenty or thirty minutes before she calmed enough to loosen her grip on him. Even then she was still shaken and weak.

"C-can I sleep on the couch in your room?" Sam asked him worriedly.

"Yeah, of course," Tony couldn't even think about saying no. If she needed the security of not being alone, he was willing to share his space.

Sam breathed a sigh of relief. She followed him to his room, took the blanket he offered her, and curled up on the sofa. Not five minutes later she was sound asleep.

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When Sam woke up in the morning with her ordinary moment of panic. It was the way she had woken up for years. A gasp of breath, assess her surroundings, look for escape routes, be aware of things that could be used as a weapon...Sam did all that and found herself safe on the sofa at the end of her father's bed. She sat up and tried to calm herself with slower breaths.

"You okay kid?" She heard Tony say and he came and sat down next to her on the sofa.

"Yeah, I always wake up like this. Sorry."

He looked saddened by that. "Hopefully that will change eventually."

"I think it will," Sam said honestly. "I feel safe with you. I can't really remember ever feeling safe before. Maybe I just need to get used to the idea."

"You are safe here," He told her. "I think you know that I would never hurt you. And if I were to ever see Dan again it would be difficult for me to not kill him."

Those words meant a great deal to her. The fact that someone cared about her enough to want to protect her was huge. She didn't know what to say to that so she let the silence lapse.

"Do you...do you remember my mother at all?" Sam asked him after a while.

"Gina Denver? I remember meeting her at a weapons expo. She worked for Hammer. She wasn't the flirty slinky dress sort of woman I went for. She was quiet and observant and smart, kind of like you. I approached her and expected she would say no but for some reason she didn't. The next day we went our separate ways and I never saw her again." Tony said. "I didn't know she was married. I am sorry that it happened that way. Some of the stuff I did back then was pretty stupid."

"I don't think she was sorry." Sam told him.

"How would you know that?" Tony asked, curious.

"I used to email my Aunt Christy. I asked her a lot of questions about my mom. I asked her about my father too. She claimed she couldn't remember his name, only that he was someone wealthy. Anyway, when I got old enough to realize that my mom had been seeing someone else while she was married to Dan, I asked Aunt Christy about that too. I wanted to know how she could do that and still be a good person." Sam reached for a tablet on the bedside stand and pulled up her email account. She logged in and searched to the email from her aunt. "This is what she told me."

Sam got up off the couch and moved towards the door. "I'm gonna go try and change these bandages, okay?"

Tony nodded, barely taking his eyes off the tablet.

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 _Dear Sam,_

 _I wish I had the perfect answer for all your questions but I don't. First of all, as I've told you in the past, I would be a terrible guardian for you. I have a problem with alcohol and just when I think I've beaten it, it comes back to haunt me. If you need money I will send it to you and if I can answer questions, I will answer them. That's all I can do._

 _As for your question about your mom's affair, I don't think you're being fair to her. You've seen for yourself how charming Dan can be when he wants to be. Gina fell for his charm. After they were married two years he finally told her that he couldn't have kids. Gina was devastated but she tried for another year to stay with him in spite of the fact that he had lied to her. They did nothing but fight for that entire year. Sometimes Dan got violent with her. I tried to convince her to leave him but she wouldn't do it. She thought she needed him to love her and she couldn't make herself leave. When your mother met your father she was in a dark place, the darkest she had ever been. She called me after that night and told me she was thinking of leaving Dan. That she had spent a night with someone who reminded her what it was like to feel special for the first time in a very long time. We wrote a few letters and then she did leave Dan. For seven months of pregnancy she was safe from him and she was happy. Your father gave her the courage to end something she might have never done without him._

 _After you were born Dan showed up at the hospital and claimed you were his. He was still her husband and no one questioned it. I was in a rehab facility at the time but as soon as I got out I tried to come and take you. Dan wouldn't allow it. A year later I had a relapse anyway so I wouldn't have been any help to you. Please promise me that you'll do what I said and call the state police directly next time you need help. Don't call 911. Dan will just send his people away over the radio. Until next time, be safe._

 _Aunt Christy._

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"So did you do like your Aunt said? Did you ever call the state police?" Tony asked Sam over breakfast.

"I tried twice. Dan realized what I was doing and knocked me out before I could make the call both times. I figured it wasn't worth getting a concussion over. I was better off to just try to keep him happy and take what I got...I stopped writing to Aunt Christy after that too. I was mad at her for not helping me. I would have rather lived with a harmless drunk Aunt than with Dan any day but she didn't care enough to realize that…"

"I can't say that I blame you there." he wasn't too happy with Aunt Christy either.

"Maybe I should write to her now and tell her that I'm away from Dan and safe now." Sam said reluctantly.

"That's up to you." Tony said,

"Can I ask you something?" Sam asked after a moment.

"Sure."

"What am I supposed to call you?" Sam was a little worried about asking.

"I guess whatever you're comfortable with is fine," he shrugged.

"So...it's okay if I call you Dad?"

"It's good with me." Tony told her.

Sam smiled a little at that. They finished their breakfast and got up with plans to go shopping. Tony wanted Sam to have better clothes and whatever other items she might need. They spent all day out. Between the shopping, the food, and the movie they went to see, it was evening before they made it back to the house again. Tony helped Sam carry her purchases to her room. She set to work putting things away, yawning all the while, and Tony stood in the doorway, unsure what to do next.

"You gonna sleep on my couch again?" He finally asked her.

"Can I?" She asked, a little worried.

"Of course kid, if it helps."

"It does." She said.

Ten minutes later Sam showed up a Tony's room with a blanket wrapped around her shoulders. He was already sitting on the couch waiting for her. Sam came into the room and sat down next him. She looked exhausted and happy. Tony reached over and put an arm around her and she responded with a sigh and leaned closer to him, letting her head rest against his chest. Tony put both arms around her and she closed her eyes. A few minutes passed in peaceful silence and he was almost sure that she had fallen asleep if not for the fact that she suddenly squeezed him a little tighter.

"Dad?" She said quietly, almost a whisper.

"Hmm?" Tony was getting fairly sleepy himself.

"I love you."

The words stunned him almost as much as the realization that he felt the same way as she did. "I love you too kid." He told her.

"No one has ever said that to me before." She said, her tears starting to soak through his shirt.

"Not ever?" Tony tried to imagine what it must have been like to live fifteen years and never be told you're loved. "Then you're gonna have to hear it pretty often to make up for that. I love you Sam. I love you."

Sam sighed contentedly against him, completely relaxed. "Wait…" She said, suddenly pulling away. "I know how to fix the shield. I was off by eight degrees…"

"That's right," Tony said.

"You knew all along?" Sam asked him.

"I did, but I knew you could figure it out for yourself," He told her.

She smiled. "I'm gonna go fix it right now." Sam got up and ran off to the lab. Tony went to bed. He doubted she would be back any time soon. She was too much like him and would probably be lost in her project for hours before realizing how late it had gotten. When she was finished she would probably come back and sleep on his couch but even if she didn't do that, even if she took her shield and went to her room, he would at least get to see her smiling face again in the morning.


	2. Chapter 2

Author's note: This story was originally intended to end with one chapter but then I thought of more content to add. If you prefer a completed story please read no further.

"I have to go back to work today," Tony told Sam over a late breakfast the next morning. She had been up half the night finishing her shield and had succeeded in making it work. "I've been off for two days, the Avengers are gonna start getting after me for being soft if I take any more time off."

Sam nodded. "That's okay. I can stay here and find stuff to do." She said.

"You could I guess." It was July, there was no school to attend and she was fifteen years old, old enough to be left alone while he worked.

"Hey, I'm a lot better off being left alone here than with Dan." She pointed out.

"You'll get bored," He said. He would get bored if he were home all day. That's why he preferred to invest so much time working or maybe partying sometimes.

She shook her head. "No… I had an idea last night while I was finishing up my shield. I want to make it smaller. Small enough to be a necklace. And not an ugly necklace either. Something nice enough that women would buy it."

"If you did that, you'd make a fortune," He said, finding he was quite proud of her ingenuity.

"I know," She said with a grin. "That's kinda the point. That, and it could help people."

"Have you figured out how to make it small enough yet?" He asked her curious. He had a few ideas himself but it was her project, it would be rude to take over.

"Most of the parts can be made smaller. The problem is the power source. Maybe I could use something rechargeable?"

"Doesn't have to be rechargeable if it charges enough the first time." Tony pointed out.

Sam's eyes widened as if she'd just thought of something important. "Oh my god…" She got to her feet, her breakfast only half eaten. "I know exactly what to do!" And she ran out of the kitchen towards the lab. Then she came running back, gave him a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Thank you, bye!" And she left the kitchen again.

Late that afternoon Tony was at Stark Tower working on some new fight simulations with Banner on the computers. Nat and Steve were sparring in an open area and the others were waiting their turn to fight. Jarvis had interrupted him several times to inform the team of any security issues that they should be aware of around the world, anything that could later become an assignment.

"Mr Stark, you are receiving a phone call from your house." Jarvis said over the speaker where everyone could hear.

Tony was busy typing in a set of codes and didn't want to stop until he was finished. He could just multi-task anyway. "Fine, put it through."

"I ran into a problem," Sam's voice came in over the speaker. "I'm kinda stuck."

"What happened kid?" Tony asked. For some reason this conversation had gotten the team's attention and they had stopped sparring. Tony was starting to wish he'd made it a private call.

"I readjusted the parameters for the new power source and everything worked great at first...then it kinda...exploded." Sam said, a little worried.

Tony stopped typing. "Jarvis put her on screen." He was more than worried. His team members noticed. The display screen on the wall soon showed a view of his lab at home. The place was a wreck, smoke and debris everywhere and Sam's arm was bleeding. "Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

"Yeah, I'm...I just have this cut on my arm. I'm fine. It's just that the room went into lockdown after the explosion and I can't get out." Sam explained. "Jarvis wouldn't let me out because I'm not authorized…"

"Jarvis, let her the hell out of there now. From now on Sam is authorized to give you commands." Tony said, angry at himself for programming Jarvis the way he had.

"Of course Mr Stark," The door to the lab clicked open on the screen.

"I'm really sorry about all this stuff…" Sam said.

"Don't worry about the stuff. It can be replaced. The only thing in there that can't be replaced is you. What did you do differently this time? How did you change the power source?" He asked, just wanting to know how it had happened.

"It was something new…" Sam went to the only computer in the room that was still working, "I'm sending it to you now."

The screen split in half and one side still showed the lab the other side showed a formula. "What the hell were you doing using this much power? You could have been killed!" Tony said.

"It wasn't too much power. It should have worked! Look." Sam sent him another file, this one showing the design of her miniaturized shield.

Tony looked it over for a moment and then shook his head. "The only way you're gonna fit that much power through the capacitor is with a lot stronger material than I have in my lab. You'd need something stronger than steel. The design is fine, it's just the materials couldn't handle it."

"I'm sorry…" Sam bit her lip, she was starting to cry.

Tony sighed. He felt guilty for yelling at her. Sam's project was still really well thought out and he'd been through a few explosions himself while making stuff. "Next time just send me your plans before you turn anything on and I can make sure it's safe."

"Sure. Whatever you say." Sam said and the fled the lab, leaving a view of only and empty smoking lab, and a mathematical formula on the screen.

"Was she….your daughter?" Nat spoke up, "Because she certainly looked like you."

"Yeah," Tony said, "Just met her two days ago," And he left it at that, not wanting to talk about it.

"This is amazing," Banner said, he had moved closer to the screen and was looking closely at Sam's project designs and formulas. "Tony you realize your kid is a genius right?"

"Of course she is," He said, trying to go back to his work on the computer.

"I think you made her cry," Wanda said.

"What choice did I have? She could have gotten herself killed." Tony argued.

"Maybe," Bruce said, "But this thing she made is beyond most people and you sort of treated her like she was stupid."

"I didn't…" Tony started to argue, then realized Bruce was right. "Okay, so maybe I'm not so good at this whole parent thing."

"Sorry to interrupt Mr Stark," Jarvis cut in, "You should be aware that Samantha has left your house with a credit card. She also also changed the security codes on your house and I am afraid you will be unable the get in when you return home."

"What the…?" Tony began.

Nat snickered a little.

"Jarvis, track her with her cell phone and let me know where she goes." Tony said.

"You're not serious?" Nat asked. "You're gonna track your own daughter?"

"I am, and Jarvis if she makes any calls, sends any texts, or buys anything then keep me informed." Tony said without bothering to argue with Nat.

A short time later Jarvis informed them that Sam had purchased multiple items from a hardware store in very large quantities.

"What do you think she's doing?" Bruce asked, thinking out loud.

"I have no idea. She's bought everything to make like 30 of her original shields and a few other things too." Tony said, still not quite understanding what she was up to.

"Tony, why don't you just talk to her and ask?" Nat said, still annoyed with him.

"Mr Stark, Sam is currently placing a call to someone by the name of Scaro Mithrax." Jarvis told him. "By all the records I am able to access, it seems that Scaro is not human."

"Can't call her now. Her line is busy." Tony said to Nat, then added, "Put up the call where I can hear it Jarvis."

"Who is calling me?" A raspy angry male voice picked up Sam's call.

"This is Sam Denver," Sam sounded rather angry herself.

"Who?" The alien rapsed.

"Maybe you remember me as Multi-Signal Girl." Sam replied.

"Oooohhh, Multi-Signal Girl! Yes I remember you. You send best signal of anyone in national science contest. You are calling me because you have changed your mind? You will send my message home now?"

"Nope. That's not why I am calling. I can do something even better. I can get you home." Sam told him.

"But I told you, without shields, my crashed ship can't get out of earth's atmosphere…" Scaro rasped, skeptical. "If you just send the message my people will come get me in a few weeks time. That's all I need."

"I am not sending your message." Sam insisted.

Scaro growled in response. "Then what do you want multi-signal girl?"

"Adamantium. You told me your ship was carrying three tons. I can fix your shields if you give it to me." Sam told him boldly.

"It isn't just the shields...I was not a science officer. Just a security guard. If something were to go wrong on the journey home I would be trapped in space with no communications system. Why not just send my message and one of my people can bring me home?"

"Because frankly I don't even like you Scaro, and I don't think I would like the rest of your people any better. I would rather that you went home than have you bring more of your people here." Sam explained, irritated. "So do we have a deal or not?"

Scaro growled again. "You can not treat me with such rudeness. I was a royal security officer. I will not tolerate such insults, especially not from a human child!"

"Well Scaro this human child is the only person who even has a clue about how to get you home. So you can stay trapped on earth for another twenty two years or you can accept my offer. What will it be?" Sam demanded an answer.

"Your shields are powerful enough to withstand earth's atmosphere?" The alien rasped.

"You can count on it." Sam said confidently.

"I will give you one ton of adamantium," Scaro offered. "I don't have all three tons anymore, I sold some of it over the years."

"What did you use to cut it?" She asked him.

"What?" The alien replied, confused.

"The adamantium? You told me it was in a solid block. If you sold some of it, how did you cut it?"

The line went silent on the other end.

"That's what I thought," Sam said. "I'll take all three tons and nothing less."

"Fine. Then we have a deal. You know the place to meet." Scaro said and he ended the call.

"Tony, you need to call her." Nat said as soon as the call had ended. She sounded worried.

"I'm on it," Tony said taking out his cell phone to make a private call this time. Sam didn't pick up her phone. He dialed her number three more times. She didn't answer. "She's not answering. I don't get it, I've only known her a few days but she always seemed so shy. There was nothing shy about that phone call."

"She's angry," Banner spoke up. "You made her feel stupid. Anger can do weird things to people, believe me."

"I wasn't trying to make her angry. I was just trying to make her safe." Tony argued.

"Look at it this way, if it were you, and your father wanted you to run all your projects by him, what would you do?" Bruce asked.

"I'd do everything I could to finish the project without his interference just to prove that I didn't need his help, to prove that I'm not stupid." Tony admitted. "That's what she's doing, isn't it?"

"Kind of looks that way," Bruce said.

"Maybe I should just fly out there and get her. Jarvis where is she now?" Tony said.

"I don't think you should do that," Bruce said. "Just try calling her again."

Tony did, and to his shock, she answered this time. The call was still playing on the speaker for everyone to hear.

"What?" Sam said, in answer to his call.

"Jarvis told me you left the house and locked me out. I see you've been buying stuff too. What's going on?" Tony asked.

"I'm just getting together some stuff to finish my shield necklace." She said, a mixture of angry and careless.

"Then why did you lock me out of my house?"

"To keep you busy so you won't try to stop me."

"Sam, I'm not gonna try to stop you. I told you I thought your project was a good idea. I want you to keep working on it." Tony protested. "I'm not sure you're making a lot sense here."

"I'm not sure it makes a lot of sense for me to run all my projects by you first," She said, clearly angry this time. "I've been building stuff for years and I had to figure out everything for myself. There was no one around to tell me when I was doing it wrong. I don't see why I should start working that way now."

"It's not about telling you you're wrong." Tony argued. "A second pair of eyes can help prevent problems. I'm just trying to make things safer."

"Safer? Safer?" Sam's voice was strained. "I'm not scared of a stupid explosion, especially if I can learn something from it to make my projects better. Do you have any idea how many times Dan hit me in the last fifteen years? How many times I've had a broken arm, cracked ribs, stitches? How many times he beat the shit out of me just because he could? How many times he held me down and…?" Sam was crying as she tried to talk to him. "Nothing that happens to me in the lab can be as bad as he was."

Tony went silent for a moment. "Sam, I can't go back and change what happened to you. All I can do is keep you safe now."

"And you want to do that by going over all my project notes and seeing what stupid things I might have missed?"

"I never used the word stupid," Tony said. "And I am sorry that the way I handled things today was insulting and I'm sorry that I yelled at you...Sam, will please just come to Stark Tower and I can go with you to gather your stuff?"

"I have to be somewhere in two hours." She said.

"Then let me come with you?"

"I can do this myself," She argued.

"I know you can. I won't interfere. I'll just silently observe. I promise." He told her.

"Okay." Sam said quietly. "And Dad, I'm sorry too. I'll unlock your house."

"Wow, that was tense," Clint said, stating the obvious, as the call ended.

"It was tense but it could have been a lot worse," Steve pointed out. "My neighbor has a teenage daughter and she argues with her father all the time. Every day, sometimes for hours, I can hear them. I'd say Sam gave in pretty easily."

"Well, an apology goes a long way," Nat said. "Sounds like that's all she really wanted."

"So who is Dan?" Wanda asked. "She said Dan hurt her."

"He was her stepfather," Tony explained. "I met Sam's mom at a weapons expo. Had no idea she was married. She died when Sam was a baby. Her mom's husband Dan raised Sam, if you can call it raising. Seems like he spent most of his spare time abusing her. She figured out who her real father was a few months ago and kept following me around but was too afraid to tell me who she was. I only figured it out accidentally."

"She still had a bruise on her face on the screen up there," Wanda pointed out sadly.

"Yeah, and there are injuries you can't see too," Tony said.

"In more ways than one, I'm sure." Banner agreed. "How does she even sleep at night?"

"Honestly, she spent the last two nights on the couch in my room and she wakes up pretty scared in the mornings." Tony told them.

A short time later Jarvis informed them that the security codes on Tony's house were reset to normal and that Sam was on her way to the tower. This time, when the elevator doors opened, Sam didn't throw up. She stepped out, looked a little overwhelmed at being in a room filled with Avengers, and then she crossed the room and went to Tony.

When she reached him he gave her a hug. He knew by now that she liked hugs and after everything that had just happened, it was best if he were to just hug her before she could do so first. He hugged her a little too tight and she whimpered with pain.

"Still hurts?" He asked her, pulling away.

She nodded. After Tony introduced her to everyone, he was ready to admit that he had listened to her phone calls. He knew he would have to admit it so that he could ask what she was doing with the adamantium. Sam spoke before he could say anything.

"I already know," Sam said as he opened his mouth to say something.

"You already know what?"

"I already know you asked Jarvis to track me and listen to my phone calls. I know because I kinda asked him to keep me informed of what you were doing." Sam admitted, a little embarrassed to say so.

"You used Jarvis against me?" Tony didn't know if he should be angry or amused.

"Not really, I just wanted to know how mad you were," She told him.

"I wasn't mad."

"You sounded mad." Sam said, a little worried.

"That was concern not anger."

"I'd hate to hear what anger sounds like then." She quipped.

"Wait...what did you think would happen if I was angry?" He asked her.

"I don't know," She mumbled. "Probably nothing except maybe some yelling."

Her words were the right answer but Tony could see just the littlest hint of doubt in her eyes. "Sam...it doesn't matter how angry I get, I will never ever hurt you."

"Even if I'm stupid?" She asked.

"You're not stupid. Sam, you are one of the smartest people I've ever met. And even if you did make a mistake, there's nothing you could do that would make me hit you." Tony told her sincerely. "I'm sorry if I scared you."

"I'm sorry I disappointed you…" Sam said and she started to cry. "It was really idiotic not to consider the conductivity of the type of metal. I should have thought of it."

Tony could well remember the feeling she was having at that moment, the fear that he had disappointed his father had been a big part of his childhood. Tony had been smarter than most people but only his father could pick up on his mistakes. "You didn't disappoint me. The shield you made is an amazing design. And you fixed the conductivity problem by securing a huge supply of adamantium. You'll be able to mass produce hundreds of thousands of those shields and make a good amount of profit. That is what the adamantium is for right?"

Sam nodded.

"I'm not disappointed," He reiterated. "I'm proud of you."

Sam started crying a little harder and she took a couple steps closer and hugged Tony. He held on to her for a couple of minutes while she cried. When she pulled away he saw that some there were several blood spots on her sky blue shirt.

"Your bandages…" He pointed out.

She looked down at herself. "It's okay, I don't have time to change bandages right now. I have an hour to make a shield generator for a Gentari space ship...I have to get started!"

"You want any help with that?" Tony offered, "I know you can do it yourself but you are short on time…"

"No, I think I am okay with it. I'll let you know." Sam said backing out of the room to head down to the lab where her purchases had been delivered. "If you want to help, you can help me think of a name for my company. It's gotta be a good name because I am gonna outsell Stark Industries in a year. It will be all over the news."

"Don't you think that might be a little overconfident?" Tony asked.

"Nope. Not at all." Sam shook her head, smiling as she left them.

"Okay, she is definitely your kid Stark." Nat said as they watched her go.

"You think so?" Tony said a little sarcastically.

Fifty minutes later the elevator doors opened and Sam was back carrying a three foot square black box with a thick wire hanging out the back and multi pronged plug like none of them had ever seen before.

"All done." she said, placing the box on a table in a corner.

"You're sure it works?" Tony asked her.

"The ship is nuclear powered so I don't really have a way to test it here...but...it works."

"Okay, then are you ready to go make the exchange?"

"There is gonna be slight problem with that." Sam said, a little worried.

"What problem?" if she was about to tell him he couldn't go with her she was going to be very wrong. He was going. No matter what.

"The thing is...I didn't think about the fact that I'm still bleeding...and Scaro...Scaro eats people. If I go there like this and he smells blood it is going to end very badly."

"He eats people?" Banner spoke up.

"Yeah, he told me that he can't digest much of anything on earth...except for humans. He supposedly only eats criminals but if he hasn't eaten in awhile...he's gonna need to feed before the journey home…I would just use my shield to defend myself but he has this phase weapon and I'm not sure what frequency it operates at. I think maybe he could get through…."

"Then you're not going. Tell him the deal is off." Tony said. There was no way this was a good idea.

"I am going and I am asking you to help me find a way to do it safely. I thought that was what you wanted?"

"Sam...you could very likely get yourself killed if you go anywhere near him."

"I have to do this! It's not just about starting my own company or about money. This technology could make people safe, could save someone's life, could save them from getting the crap beaten out of them day after day, could keep them from feeling scared every day. If I have to risk my life to make other people safe then I am willing to do that."

"Maybe I'm not willing to let you risk your life!" Tony was finding it difficult to keep from shouting.

Natasha came alongside Tony and put her hand on his arm as if to calm him. "It wouldn't be as much of a risk if you brought along some help." She suggested.

"She makes a good point," Banner agreed.

"Are you guys saying you want to help her do this?" Tony asked.

"I am not even human," Thor spoke, after being silent most of the day. "Scaro will not eat me and I doubt he can do me any harm. I will assist her."

"We will all assist her," Wanda agreed.

"Fine," Tony gave in. "If you wanna do this you'll have to accept some extra company." He told Sam.

She nodded her agreement. "Thank you." Sam grabbed her device and headed for the elevator.


	3. Chapter 3

The exchange was to take place in an old warehouse just outside the city. Nat and Wanda had helped Sam to wrap plastic wrap around herself to cover the bandages and minimize the smell of blood. Sam wore clean clothes over the layer of plastic and bandages. Only Tony and Thor planned to enter the warehouse with her. The others would wait outside, taking up positions where they could help if they were needed.

The two SUVs carrying the Avengers had just pulled into the parking lot at the warehouse when Sam's cell phone pinged.

"That had better not be Scaro," Sam said, taking out her phone to check the message. She read the message and her face turned deathly pale.

"What is it?" Tony asked her.

"It's Dan…" She said, visibly shaken by his message. "He wants me to come back. He says I've played rich kid long enough and it's time to go home."

"Ignore him. In fact, block his number. You're not going back there." Tony said.

Her phone pinged a second time. "He says he's at the station and he's using a GPS tracker on my phone and that if I don't come home in an hour then a squad car will come get me."

"He's not taking you anywhere," Tony told her, "Let's just deal with Scaro and after that we'll take care of Dan."

Sam nodded and opened the car door.

"Actually, let me see your phone. I can disable the tracking." Tony said and when she passed him the phone he simply pulled out the battery.

They entered the warehouse through a regular door next to one of the garage bays. It was dimly lit inside. The large open space housed a spaceship as well as multiple shelves of various tools and junk. In the far end of the warehouse was something huge and metallic just sitting there. Adamantium. There was also an opening in the roof nearly the same size as the ship. Scaro came wandering out from around the other side of the ship. He was seven feet tall and humanoid but rather ugly for a human with a large nose and ears and a protruding forehead. He could pass for human but only because no one expected him to be alien.

"Multi Signal girl!" Scaro rasped, sounding happy to see her. "You are taller since I last saw you. This surprises me since I do not think your guardian treated you well. How did you find strength to grow?"

Sam looked confused that he knew so much about her. "I have your shield generator." She said, not answering his question.

"Yes and you have brought guards?"

"Something like that," She admitted.

"This saddens me, Multi-Signal girl." Scaro said rather dramatically. "You do not need protection from me. I told you, I only eat criminals. My people never eat sentient beings on my home world but since I am trapped here, I am forced to survive somehow. I would not harm you, especially not when you are helping me return home."

"I appreciate that but they're staying with me all the same," Sam said a little warily.

"As you wish," Scaro replied as he opened the door to his ship and led the way inside.

"Hold up," Tony said, taking Sam's arm and stopping her from entering the ship. "I think it would be best if Scaro were to wait outside the ship with Thor while Sam installs the shield. He can come in and test everything once you're done." He didn't want to be trapped inside an alien ship with that guy.

Scaro growled at this idea but he turned and exited the ship anyway. "Go then," He sputtered at Sam.

She went into the ship with Tony while Thor and Scaro waited outside. "You know where to go?" Tony asked.

"Yeah, he sent me schematics of the ship when he contacted me two years ago." She said, heading straight for the place where the broken shield generator was.

Tony helped her to take out the old generator. She didn't ask for his help but her hands were shaking and he was pretty sure she could use a little assistance. She didn't refuse his help. She actually looked a little thankful when he lifted the new shield generator into place so she could plug it into the system.

"Okay, now we need to go to the bridge and run a diagnostic." Sam said, relieved that at least one part of it was over with.

They reached the bridge and found it looked like something out of science fiction. "I want one of these," Tony said, a little amazed. "You still have those schematics he sent you? I want to build one of these."

"Yeah, I still have them." Sam said, heading for one of the stations with a computer.

"Hey, that isn't English," He noticed the alien language on the screen. "How are you gonna…?"

Sam typed something into the panel. "It's fine. I learned Gentari two years ago when he sent me all this stuff. I kinda got a little obsessed with it, with the ship and the language and the possibility of travel to other worlds. It helped keep me sane with everything going on at home."

"Right." He could see how that could happen.

"Crap," Sam muttered as she watched the screen.

"Something wrong with the diagnostic?"

"No, it's fine. I just found his list of victims. They really are all criminals. Maybe he was telling the truth about that." Sam said, a little skeptically.

"Maybe that's not the whole list."

"Good point."

"Anyway, the diagnostic is good. Ship's computer says the shield is working and compatible." Sam said and the two of them headed back towards the exit.

Scaro was waiting for them just outside his ship. "I will run my own diagnostic now. If I am satisfied that the shield is functional, I will leave the metal here for you as promised."

"Scaro does not seem so disagreeable as we were led to expect," Thor said as Scaro left them.

"He eats people, remember?" Tony pointed out.

"I have not forgotten." Thor said.

A short time later they heard Scaro growling and shuffling back out the exit of the ship. "Multi- Signal girl should leave now. Right now!"

"W-what? Why?" She asked, he hadn't had enough time to run a diagnostic yet and he seemed upset. "The shield works. I know it does!"

"It is not about the shield. Your guardian, the one who hurt you, has nearly arrived. You must go. He is very angry." Scaro told them.

"You're telepathic," Tony said, it finally making sense.

"Yes, and she must go. He has brought many police officers. He has told them that the girl was stolen from him. They will kill to get her back." Scaro explained.

"So what do we do?" Sam asked no one in particular.

"Do they have news vans out there too?" Tony asked. "Seems like the kidnapping of a cop's kid would be news worthy."

Scaro thought for a moment, as if searching for other minds in the area. "Indeed they do."

"Good. What's Dan's number? I'm gonna call him." Tony said. Sam looked skeptical but she gave him the number anyhow. "This is Tony Stark," he said the moment Dan picked up. "You need to pack up all your officers and leave right now."

"Where is Sam? Is she okay?" Dan asked. Tony knew he probably had to say that because some of his fellow officers were standing right there listening. Still, the man did a pretty good job of sounding concerned.

"If you don't leave in the next fifteen minutes, I have a file I'm gonna send to that news crew out there. When they get it, the result will be that you will no longer have a job or freedom."

"What file? Look, Sam has a very serious mental illness. Whatever you think you have, you've got it all wrong. Sometimes she hurts herself. She throws herself down the stairs and then she call 911 and tells them I beat her up. But I never hurt that kid. Never." Dan insisted. "So send whatever file you want. I don't care...just let me talk to her. I wanna hear that she's okay."

"No, you're not talking to her," Tony said, a little frustrated that he was losing his advantage because of Dan's story that his crimes were gonna be passed off as Sam's mental illness.

"I'll talk to him," Sam spoke up.

"No way," Tony put the phone down for a moment. "You'll probably have nightmares for a week."

"I have an idea. Please?" She asked.

Reluctantly, Tony handed her the phone. "Dan?"

"Sam? Are you alright?" Dan answered.

"You can stop the charade now. It's over. I went to the hospital two nights ago. They have proof now of what you did to me." Sam told him. "You need to tell your people to leave, and then come in here unarmed."

"Sam...don't do this to me…" Dan actually sounded worried.

"Send your people away, and get in here." Sam handed the phone back to Tony.

"You heard her. You got ten minutes." Tony said and he ended the call.

"What do you expect we will do with him when he enters this place?" Thor asked her.

"Nothing. We're not gonna be here. It will just be Dan and Scaro." Sam said, heading for the back door. "Maybe he needs some rations for his journey home."

Scaro perked up at that. "I could eat him for you Multi-Signal girl. He was very cruel to you. I could eat him slowly."

"Wait a minute," Tony said to Sam, "You can't just-"

"It is done!" Scaro interrupted, angry. "I am hungry. I have smelled her blood for nearly an hour. I will eat the cruel man and I will go home. She offered him to me. It is done."

"Well, technically it's not actually done yet," Tony said.

"The police officers are leaving," Scaro said. "The cruel man is coming here. I can eat him or I can eat her. You decide."

"You're not eating her." Tony said, "And I'm pretty sure Thor and I could stop you from eating anyone."

"I do not wish to stop him," Thor said. "Not unless you tell me that the man called Dan will face justice for his crimes against your daughter."

Tony was pretty sure whatever Dan might face, it wouldn't be justice. Even if they did manage to convict him for a crime, no amount of time in jail could make up for the things he had done to Sam. "I don't wish to stop him either." Tony said after a moment. "Come on Sam, let's get out of here."

"Sorry to interrupt Sir," Jarvis spoke to Tony at work with the rest of the Avengers. "Sam has left school early and is on her way here."

"Why did she leave early?" Tony mused aloud.

"Maybe something happened?" Nat added, not so helpfully. For the past six months the team had been just as concerned for Sam's well being as Tony had. It was as if she were their mascot.

"I'm sure nothing happened," Bruce said. "Nothing big anyway. University can be stressful. Maybe she just cut class."

"University can be stressful?" Clint asked, annoyed. "This from one of the smartest people in the room. Which part was stressful? Getting good grades or getting all the professors to love you?"

"Getting the other students to understand…" Bruce said.

Tony nodded agreement but said nothing on the matter. Moments later the elevator doors opened and Sam came rushing in. She looked happy, not sad or upset.

"I have the best news! Can you guess what it is?" She was beaming.

"You have a boyfriend?" Wanda made a guess.

"How is that good news?" Tony asked.

"Nope. Not that," Sam said.

"You invented something new?" Steve suggested.

"Well, I did just yesterday, but not that….never mind, I'll just tell you. As of an hour ago, I just made my first million dollars!"

"Huh," Tony said. "I was gonna buy you a new car but I guess you can buy your own."

"You can still buy me a car." Sam said. "I probably wouldn't say no if you did."

"Then I still will." Tony said. "And even though you didn't quite outsell Stark Industries in your first year, you still did really well. I'm proud of you kid."

"Thank you so much Dad," She said, hugging him briefly. "And all of you. I couldn't have done it without you. To celebrate, dinner is on me tonight."

After dinner at a fancy restaurant with all of the Avengers Tony and Sam went home and watched a movie that evening, more thankful for each other's company than for all the money in the world.


End file.
